They were symbols of Soviet power. The symbols of war are the star. Medal "Gold Star"
An interesting but little touched upon topic is the symbolism of the five-pointed star. This simple symbol is one of the oldest, it began to be used several thousand years before our era. It has become widespread in many cultures and has a great semantic load. The same star, differing only in color, is present in the symbols of the United States, the European Union, Soviet Union, China and many other countries and social movements.
Since it is widely used to convey various meanings and ideas, for a better understanding of them, we will briefly consider some of its main meanings.
Andrei Rublev. Transfiguration. 1405
In general, the first notable use the five-pointed star falls on the state of Sumer in Mesopotamia for 3000 BC. e. In their writing, such a pictogram denoted a corner, a small room, a pit.
Among the ancient Pythagoreans, the pentagram (from the word pentagramos - five-lined) meant five shelters where primitive chaos was placed during the creation of the world, and they were in Tartarus. The darkness in these shelters was considered the source of the soul of the world, as well as the source of wisdom. This pentagram was drawn with two rays up.
The symbol of the goddess ruling this other world is an apple, since when cut in it you can see a pentagram. Therefore, the pentagram was also a symbol of health and the goddess Hygieia. In addition, Pythagoras argued that in geometry, the pentagram is a mathematical perfection. But, without delving into the mathematical characteristics of this figure, let's go further.
In Kabbalah, a pentagram with one ray up means the messiah. The pentagram is also the symbol of Solomon's seal and was for some time the official seal of Jerusalem.
For a Muslim, it can mean the five pillars of the Muslim faith and the five daily prayers.
In Christian Europe, the five-pointed star had a number of symbolic meanings. Except for what's left of time ancient world symbol of health, it symbolized five rays of five senses, five fingers. In religion, the pentagram was used as a symbol of the five wounds of Christ, the five joys of Mary, which brought her the perfection of her son Jesus. It also symbolized the Star of Bethlehem at Christmas (in Russia, the Star of Bethlehem was seven-pointed).
One of the main meanings of the five-pointed star was the symbol of the human nature of Christ, so in the Renaissance, when man and the human person began to take on more and more importance, this symbol also became more important. The five-pointed star resembles a man with outstretched arms and legs apart, like drawings by Leonardo da Vinci. With the development of humanism and atheism, the star began to mean simply the human person, as a new highest value. new era.
In fact, the five-pointed star and humanistic ideals became widespread during the Great french revolution. With the advent of a new atheistic ideology, a person was placed in first place in the system of values, and the star in a humanistic sense became one of the most important symbols. As a result of these changes, the star also became widespread in military symbols, first of the French Republic, and then of other countries. In this sphere, she symbolized the god of war Mars, according to legend, was born from a lily, which resembles a five-pointed star. This sign is used both for identification and for various other designations.
With the spread of values and social forces of the new era, the five-pointed star also began to spread. She has always been an important sign in the symbolism of the Masons, a social force that began to gain global importance after the French and American revolutions. In addition to ancient and occult meanings, the star began to be widely used by them for the public expression of their ideas - the spiritual improvement of man and the elevation of man to the head of the entire value system in an atheistic version. Therefore, the star is widely used in the state symbols of many countries built according to Masonic drawings - the United States, where the stars on the flag also mean the Kingdom of Heaven, the European Union and others.
The five-pointed star is also used by many movements and organizations, and its symbolism is often associated either with the Masonic forces behind them, or with the communist movement that adopted it into its symbolism.
A star with two rays up is used by the church of "saints last day or Mormons. An inverted star with rays of different colors symbolizing the Star of Bethlehem is also a symbol of the largest fraternalist organization - the Order of the Eastern Star. This order brings together about a million masons in the rank of not less than a master and is known for its charitable activities.
An inverted pentagram with two rays up is one of the main symbols of Satanists. Such a pentagram means Tartarus or hell, the place where fallen angels are imprisoned. Inside the inverted pentagram, the head of Baphomet is also often drawn in the form of a goat's head. All this symbolizes the anti-human nature and the worship of animal passion. The three rays of the star turned downward also signify the rejection of the Holy Trinity.
The pentagram is also often found among the pagans, serving them as one of the symbols of faith - the five ends of the star mean earth, water, air, fire and spirit. Although in ancient times the pagan pentagram was drawn with two beams up, now it is usually depicted with one beam up, so as not to evoke associations with Satanists. Both in antiquity and today, the pentagram remains an important symbol for druids, Wiccans, neo-Pythagoreans, and other pagan and magical groups.
In the 20th century, when the communist movement began to acquire global significance, and a socialist revolution took place in Russia, new symbols were needed for the new state. Initially, the red star with a plow and a hammer was adopted as the emblem and identification mark of the Red Army. Here the star symbolized the god of war Mars, and this emblem personified the protection of peaceful labor.
After the February Revolution, the Provisional Government abolished shoulder straps, but did not abandon the "Mars Star". On April 21, 1917, Minister of War and Naval Affairs A. Guchkov places a five-pointed star on the pegs of sailors' caps - right above the anchor.
However, the “Mars star” proved itself most clearly after another revolution - the Great October Revolution. The young did not have time Soviet government begin to form the Red Army, as an urgent need arose for a new symbolism. This was largely due to the fact that in the fire civil war the opposing sides were often dressed in clothes of the same cut and in battle it was not easy to distinguish strangers from their own.
So the famous red five-pointed star appears for the first time in the symbolism of the Land of the Soviets.
Unfortunately, accurate, documented evidence of the author of this symbol has not been preserved. Some historians believe that the star was proposed by one of the commissars of the Moscow Military District N. Polyansky, others - that this was done by a member of the All-Russian Collegium for the Organization and Management of the Red Army - K. Eremeev.
However, in the early years, due to the presence of anti-Christian and Zionist elements in the core of the Bolshevik organization, the image of a star with two ends up was accepted. The first Soviet Order of the Red Banner had just such an inverted image of a star.
But such a symbol caused such rejection in society that they soon abandoned it and officially approved the image of a star with one ray up.
But new country new state symbols were also required, and the red star turned out to be a fairly suitable and popular symbol for this. Therefore, it soon moved from the banners of the army carrying the liberation of the world proletariat to the coat of arms and banners of the first country building communism. In Soviet state symbols, the red star next to the hammer and sickle began to mean the unity of the working people of five continents with a single beginning and goal. The red color symbolized the brotherhood and the blood shed for the freedom of the working people of the whole world.
It is authentically known that for the first time the new symbol was mentioned in the Izvestiya newspaper on April 19, 1918. There was published a note that the Commissariat for Military Affairs approved a drawing of a badge in the form of a red star with a golden image of a hammer and a plow. Initially, the red star also carried the image of the book, but it looked too clumsy and the book was removed.
Officially, the symbol called “Mars star with a plow and a hammer” was approved by L. Trotsky’s order of May 7, 1918. The following was also said there: “The Red Army badge belongs to persons serving in the Red Army. Persons who are not in the service of the Red Army are invited to remove these signs immediately. For failure to comply with this order, the guilty will be brought to trial by a military tribunal.
At first, the "Mars star" was worn on a triangular block, clinging to the left side of the chest. However, this form turned out to be inconvenient, and the jewelry company suggested placing stars on wreaths of laurel and oak leaves, which were left over from the old signs.
For a while, the shape and location of the star varied greatly. On July 29, 1918, Trotsky issues another order, where the red star was required to be worn on the band of the cap. Lacquered, the cockade badge had a more convex shape, and the rays of the star had more rounded edges.
The greatest number of rumors, then and now, caused the meaning of the symbol of the red star. Haters of Soviet power immediately remembered the Masons, and even Satanists. About Masons. Of course, they were in Russia for a long time. At first, the Masons carried educational ideas, and after Radishchev and the Decembrist uprising, they began to express the interests of the pro-Western liberal nobility, the intelligentsia and the big bourgeoisie.
As you know, the Bolsheviks disliked liberals for a long time, and after the February Revolution, they generally stood on the other side of the barricade. Well, the Masons did not complain at all. Whether it's the symbolism of the United States, which was really created by the Masons, and which no one really hid (hence the stars on the flag, and the pyramid with an eye on the dollar, etc.).
As for the red star, the Bolsheviks were guided in choosing it by the relative novelty of the symbol and its quite traditional meanings - military (“Mars star”), protective (pentagram as a talisman) and guiding (as a symbol of high aspirations).
Of course, the new symbolism (not without the propaganda of opponents of Soviet power) at first aroused superstitious fear among a part of the common people. It was not for nothing that on February 11, 1919, at a conference of the 2nd Soviet (Ukrainian) division, the head of its political department, I. Mints, complained that "peasant youth are full of prejudices against" communes ", against the new" cockade "- the Red Army star ...".
And here the Bolsheviks also made an oversight, placing the new symbol with two rays up. This can be seen both in the first badges and on some Bolshevik posters (for example, D. Moor's poster "Soviet Russia - a besieged camp. All for defense!" 1919). And, as I already wrote, after the work of E. Levy, this position of the star began to be interpreted as a sign of Satanism. At the same time, it was completely forgotten that the inverted pentagram was on the seal of Emperor Constantine (the one who made Christianity the official Roman religion) and was generally interpreted for a long time as a symbol of the Transfiguration of Jesus Christ (this can be seen, for example, on the icon of Andrei Rublev). Naturally, having discovered such a reaction, the Bolsheviks gave the star a more "decent" position.
Let's see how the commissars of the Red Army themselves explained the symbols of the Red Star to the common people in a 1918 leaflet:
“... The red star of the Red Army is the star of Truth ... Therefore, the plow and hammer are depicted on the Red Army star. The plow of a plowman-man. Hammer hammer-worker.
This means that the Red Army is fighting to ensure that the star of Truth shines on the plowman-man and the hammer-worker, so that for them there is a will and a share, rest and bread, and not just need, poverty and uninterrupted work .... She is the star of happiness for all the poor, peasants and workers. This is what the red star of the Red Army means.
The story of the Red Star did not end there. On January 16, 1919, embroidered stars adorned the new headdress of the Red Army. In form, he copied the helmets of Russian knights, and therefore at first he was dubbed the “hero”. However, soon they began to call him by the names of the famous red commanders - “Frunzevka” and “Budyonovka” (the latter name stuck).
There were changes in the design of the star. April 13, 1922, depicted on it, the plow was replaced by a more elegant sickle. And on July 11 of the same year, the shape of the star also changed - it ceased to be convex, and its rays straightened again. In this form, she finally established herself in the Red (and then Soviet) Army.
In 1923, already without tools (so as not to repeat the military emblem), the Red Star crowned the emblem of the Soviet Union and the emblems of almost all Soviet republics. It is interesting that she got on the coat of arms of the RSFSR later than everyone else - in 1978! It is also interesting that in the 1930s a project was proposed to make a 12-beam star (according to the number of union republics).
Having switched to the coat of arms of the USSR, the five-pointed star has already acquired a more global symbolism. It was already about the five continents, where there is a bloody struggle for the liberation of the working people from exploitation.
In 1924, a five-pointed star appeared on the flag of the USSR, in 1928 (with a portrait of young Lenin) an October star appeared, in 1935 a star decorated with gems crowned the Spasskaya Tower of the Kremlin, and in 1942 a pioneer badge took the form of a star (before that it wore a flag).
It would seem that with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the time of the Red Star also ended. The fragments of the state chose new symbols for themselves, remained only in the symbols of the Communist Parties. It was even said in Russia that it would not hurt to replace the Kremlin stars with double-headed eagles.
However, the growing social tension, moral and economic decline in the post-Soviet space made some political leaders treat Soviet symbols more cautiously. So in 2002, trying to somehow restore the "broken connection of times", Russian Defense Minister S. Ivanov proposed, and President V. Putin approved the return of the five-pointed star to the symbols of the Russian army.
Trinity Cathedral is one of the most significant temples of the Northern capital. It is visible for 25 kilometers - from all over St. Petersburg. The temple turns 182 this year. Before construction, according to legend, this place was a wooden chapel, which was founded by Peter I.
The project of the Trinity Cathedral was designed by the architect Stasov. Nicholas I took an active part in the work on the drawings. future emperor dreamed of becoming an architect. The restorers tried to follow Stasov's surviving drawings.
The temple was always heated. To hide the pipes that would spoil the majestic view of the cathedral, Stasov went to the trick: he disguised them. Each dome is surrounded by bowls containing trumpets. When the temple was heated, it turned out that the smoke came from the bowls. From a distance it looked very beautiful.
The central chandelier for the cathedral was made in 1886 in the jewelry workshop "Nicholas and Plinke". Pushkin often ordered things there, and even owed a fair amount to the masters. The restorers tried to restore the former splendor of the chandelier, despite the fact that Plinke's drawings mysteriously disappeared from St. Petersburg after the revolution.
Before the revolution, the soldiers of the Izmailovsky regiment prayed in the temple - the most privileged in imperial army. AT different years Suvorov's father, Gogol's grandfather, and Pushkin's uncle and father served there. Each ruler, entering the throne, presented the regiment with a special banner for military merit. After the restoration, the banners were blatantly hung in place.
Six-pointed stars have long been a symbol of the army. It was the will of Nicholas I. The emperor wanted everyone to see that the temple belongs to the military clergy. After the revolution, the Bolsheviks painted over the dome, but now the restorers have restored the long-forgotten symbol.
Drawings and sketches of the marching iconostasis are stored in the temple. Before the revolution, every military priest had one. Before a similar iconostasis, the dying Nekrasov and his beloved Fekla Viktorova were crowned. The writer could no longer move, and his friends asked the military clergy to perform the ceremony in Nekrasov's apartment.
The restorers painted the interior of the dome using the fresco technique. The pattern imitates a three-dimensional pattern. It was repeated exactly according to Stasov's drawings kept in the Hermitage. "Careful attention to the original documents allows you to repeat and even strengthen what Stasov wanted to show," says Irina Voinova, main architector cathedral restoration project.
Restorers rebuilt the stairs and repaired the floor. Chips were visible on the side sheets of the columns inside the temple. They were carefully cleaned, re-cast from plaster and frozen.
Great Russian revolution 1917 made noticeable adjustments to all signs, ranks, ranks and attributes of our armed forces. They were simply cancelled. On January 16, 1918, the All-Russian Central Executive Committee announced the creation of the Red Army, which was supposed to be a new type of army. Together with various questions of its organization, the question of insignia of a new form arose. took place in the same country, the opposing forces spoke the same language, had the same weapons, and the basic military uniform not much different from opponents. How to determine who is yours, who is a stranger?
Source: https://www.liveinternet.ru
Five-pointed symbol of the Red Army
Initially, the red armbands were the difference between the revolutionary units. They were placed on the sleeve or on the headdress. But it was very unreliable, and they were replaced by five-pointed stars. For the first time they were mentioned in the newspaper "Izvestia" dated April 19, 1918. The newspaper informed that a draft badge was created for the fighters of the new army, which will be presented in the form of a red star, and on a golden background in the center there will be an image of a plow and a hammer. This option has become a symbol of the unity of the world proletariat, and the five continents. And the red color in Russia is the color of the proletarian revolution.
We must be fair and say that the five-pointed star for military personnel is not a Bolshevik invention. Back in 1827, forged stars of various sizes and quantities first appeared on the epaulettes of Russian generals and officers, and already in 1854 they were replaced by sewn stars on new shoulder straps. The star was perceived as a direct attribute of the god Mars and was called the Mars star. Whether or not the developers of insignia looked into the future, but the fact is obvious: military symbols have retained their continuity.
Anniversary badge of the 5th battery of the 3rd artillery brigade. Source: https://encyclopedia.mil.ru
Unfortunately, there is no exact evidence of who is the author of this symbol. Some experts believe that the star was proposed by one of the commissars of the Moscow Military District N. Polyansky, others are inclined to believe that K. Eremeev, a member of the collegium for the organization and management of the Red Army, became the author.
Initially, it was decided that the star was worn on the chest, but on November 15, 1918, the order of the Revolutionary Military Council No. 773 was issued, according to which the star was placed on the headdresses not only of soldiers, but also of sailors.
The first Red Army soldiers. Source: https://www.liveinternet.ru
The main symbol of the USSR
The army red star very soon began to personify Soviet Russia itself. In 1923, she appeared as an element on the coat of arms of the USSR, and in 1924 - on the flag of the Land of Soviets. In 1930, red ruby stars appeared on the first five towers of the Moscow Kremlin. Members of the October organization began to wear a red star with the image of a young man, in 1942 the star also adorned the pioneer badge.
The victory of the Soviet people is also inseparable from the main symbol of the Red Army. The red star was the identification mark of the Armed Forces of the USSR and in postwar period. This sign is known all over the world, and like no other it embodies the heroism and courage of the people who defended peace on earth.
Badges of the Red Army. 1919-1922
That rare case when the Bolsheviks did not "throw overboard" history and traditions
In the early nineties, it became fashionable to trample Soviet symbols into the dirt. In particular, there were many attempts to discredit the red five-pointed star - they say, this is a satanic sign associated with black magic. However, if we consider the history of this symbol, it becomes clear that it was not Satanists who invented it at all.
From the depths of centuries
The five-pointed star as a symbol, according to the most conservative estimates, is about five thousand years old. The Sumerians used this sign to designate a corner, a pit or a small room, a room. The Pythagoreans saw five shelters in the pentagram, in which, when creating our world, primitive chaos was hidden. The inhabitants of Babylon used a star with five rays as a sign protecting their home from thieves. For a while, the five-pointed star was the official seal of Jerusalem - perhaps that is why medieval scholars who dreamed of mastering magic called the pentacle the seal of the king Solomon. And the ancient Romans considered the five-pointed star a symbol of the god of war. Mars- according to legend, he was born from a lily; it was the lily that symbolized the “Mars star”.
During the Great French Revolution, the five-ray star penetrated the military symbols of the young republic and settled on epaulettes and headdresses of generals and officers. It was from France that the five-pointed star made its way to Russia: in 1827, with a light hand NicholasI epaulettes of the highest army ranks began to be decorated with gold forged stars. After 27 years, in 1854, also under Nicholas I, epaulettes will appear on the shoulders of the Russian military, and embroidered stars will appear on the epaulettes.
well forgotten old
When in 1917 the February Revolution, all royal insignia in the army were abolished en masse.
According to order No. 321 dated May 7, 1918, issued by the People's Commissar of the Republic Leon Trotsky, "Mars star with a plow and a hammer" becomes the sign of the Red Army. There is an opinion that the introduction of the five-pointed star into the symbolism was carried out as part of a campaign to attract former tsarist officers to the Red Army.
The star, symbolizing the Red Army, was also red - like the banners of the young republic. At first, it was thought of as a badge on the breastplate - however, after six months it successfully migrated to the headdresses of the military and sailors, where it remained for many years.
Each character needs a legend. At the dawn of the existence of the Red Army, the red five-pointed star personified the unity of the "proletarians of all countries" - workers from all five continents; red was the color of the revolution, the color of the blood that was shed for freedom. Later, red stars on headdresses became associated with defending warriors.
From January 1919, stars began to be sewn onto the new headdresses of the Red Army, resembling the helmets of ancient knights in shape. The first name of these pointed hats - "heroes" - did not take root; they remained in the memory of the people as Budyonovka.
Poster "Join the red cavalry", 1920 Coats of arms and flags
Soon the red stars gained such popularity that they lit up on the coat of arms and banner of the young country building communism. And then they began to light up on the emblems of the republics. By the way, the red star appeared on the coat of arms of the RSFSR only in 1978!
Interestingly, there are considerable chances to become a symbol Soviet Russia had another ancient sign, which later, in the middle of the 20th century, gained notoriety thanks to the Nazis. Yes, we are talking about the swastika. She even at one time flaunted on banknotes - "Kerenki". However, the coat of arms of the country never got over.
In 1928, an October star was born - also red, but with a portrait of a young Volodya Ulyanova in the middle. All Octobrists were obliged to wear it on the left side of the chest. And in 1935, the stars, decorated with Ural gems, shone on the Spasskaya, Troitskaya, Borovitskaya and Nikolskaya towers of the Kremlin. True, these stars soon dimmed, so that in 1937 Stalin ordered to install on these towers, as well as on the Vodovzvodnaya tower, red stars made of milky (inside) and ruby (outside) glass. The leader considered that with such stars the Kremlin would become more beautiful. And this, perhaps, is the little in which we can agree with him.
19.04.2018
100 years ago, the People's Commissariat for Military Affairs installed the emblem of the Red Army - a five-pointed star with a gold border.
On April 19, 1918, the Izvestia newspaper reported: “The Commissariat for Military Affairs established a drawing of a badge for the soldiers of the Red Army. The sign depicts a star with golden rays, in the middle on a red field there are golden images of a plow and a hammer ... "On May 7, 1918, an order was issued People's Commissariat on military affairs No. 321: “The Red Army badge belongs to persons serving in the Red Army…” Order No. 42 of May 8, 1918 read: Soviet Army must be supplied with a Red Army book with a signature under the obligation, as well as a Red Army badge: "Mars star with a plow and a hammer."
The badge was approved on July 29, 1918 by Order No. 594. Following this, the Military Department of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee (VTsIK) published the pamphlet "Red Star", which stated:
“... Look at this red star ... this red star is a sign of the glorious defender of the working people and the poor of the Workers 'and Peasants' Red Army. You see a hammer and a plow on a red star - a symbol of the unity of the urban worker and the village plowman, in order to defend their land and will, the workers 'and peasants' Soviet power and the socialist Fatherland, to the last drop of blood from the enemies and executioners of the working people - the capitalists, nobles, landlords, kulaks , foreign robbers and other counter-revolutionary bastards.
You know, comrade, who is the friend and who is the enemy of the working people.
You must know who is your protector from bondage and slavery, from the royal-landlord power.
Your protector is a worker or a peasant - a warrior of the revolution, who joined the ranks of the glorious Red Army.
Only your Red Army defender can wear the badge of the red star.
Now think and remember what a great symbol this red star is - a symbol of the unity of the worker and the plowman, who have thrown the bloodsucker tsar, landowners and capitalists from their necks and hoisted the red banner of socialism over Russia ... ".
The high value of the new emblem was also explained by a leaflet published in the same year: “Why does the Red Army wear a red star? Because every army wears an image of what it serves. What did the cockade of the old army represent? A ribbon from the royal flag in the radiance of rays and meant that she served the king. And the former army served the tsar, and on his orders beat the peasants and workers and helped the landowners and bourgeois oppress the people, use their labor and, doing nothing, live at their expense ... Everything under the red star, comrades! For she is the star of truth!.. She is the star of the happiness of all the poor, peasants and workers…”.
On September 16, 1918, the Decree of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee established the first Soviet military order of the Red Banner: on a white field framed by a laurel wreath, a red banner with the inscription "Proletarians of all countries, unite!" and a five-pointed star covering the crossed hammer, plow and rifle.
After the Civil War, on April 13, 1922, by order of the Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic No. 953, the plow symbol on the star was replaced with a sickle. Since May 29, a star with a sickle and a hammer has become mandatory for military headgear - dads, caps, caps, panama hats, caps, berets ... Since 1924, a star with a sickle and a hammer has become an integral part of the Emblem of the USSR and the State Flag of the USSR.
On April 6, 1930, the Presidium of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee established the Order of the Red Star, covered with ruby enamel, on it is the figure of a Red Army soldier with a rifle at the ready. Established in 1934 Golden Star Hero of the Soviet Union, in 1939 the Gold Star "Hammer and Sickle" of the Hero of Socialist Labor. In 1935, five towers of the Moscow Kremlin were crowned with red stars. On the 20th anniversary of the Great October socialist revolution in 1937 they were replaced by the current ruby ones. The red star became the central element of the cockades introduced in the Red Army since 1940 for marshals and generals.
During the Great Patriotic War, the image of a star was left on the walls of the Brest Fortress by its heroic defenders, and underground heroes drew blood in the death chambers. Hand-drawn stars on gun barrels, aircraft fuselages, and tank armor kept track of the destroyed Nazi equipment. Leaflets with stars carried the words of truth to people behind enemy lines. In 1943, stars appeared on officer epaulets. Images of the star adorned the guards banners, the badge of the guards and the highest commander's order "Victory", the orders of Glory and Patriotic War, military medals ...
Glorifying the red star, the famous Soviet poet Demyan Bedny wrote:
Not Mars shines on us from above,
Not the bloodthirsty god of war, -
Not for the vile profits
Priests, nobles and merchants,
Closing ranks, we go into battle:
We are fighting violence!
Like a scarlet poppy in an open field,
Our battle sign sparkles,
Witness the connection of the age
Families of the world, labor,
Symbol of victorious Labor -
Red Star!
"Communist World"
*The site administration is not responsible for the content of the posted materials. All claims should be directed to the authors.
